Door drop cloth: a single-piece, temporary floor covering that will lay flat while passing through a doorway, and efficiently cover the immediate working area on both sides of a door or doorway; in and for a variety of door or threshold widths

ABSTRACT

A temporary, one piece floor cover, or drop cloth, is disclosed. Wherein this single piece floor cover has been made to pass through a doorway, cover the immediate working area of both sides of a doorway, and do so while laying flat, eliminating bunching, and facilitating door operation; in a most efficient manner. A unique section of this floor covering offers this ability as well as the ability to accommodate a variety of door or doorway widths, when attempting to protect the permanent flooring of this specific area from any potential spills, stains, or general traffic and debris; consistently and efficiently.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

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STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

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REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISC APPENDIX

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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention pertains to a one piece, temporary drop cloth or floor covering, its inherent functions and limitations; as used commonly, by many, in order to protect the permanent flooring beneath.

There is often a need to cover, in order to protect, a floor when performing such tasks as painting, carpentry, texturing, or the like. Traditional, rectangular floor coverings that are made up of fabric, plastic or paper are common solutions for many who desire to protect their permanent flooring from any potential spills, stains, debris or the like. All in all, these existing floor covers provide desired coverage for rather large-sized, rectangular areas; such as hallways and rooms.

However, inherent in all these forms of floor protection is the inability to adequately cover the area that passes through a doorway, and the immediate working area on both sides of the door or doorway; not only without debilitating the doors' functioning, but more specifically, with just a single drop cloth or floor cover.

Having been a painter myself, in order to adequately cover the floor area of a doorway, I would commonly use two drop cloths; one abutting or parallel to each side of the doorway. Also in order to cover the actual threshold, or the area left exposed in between the two drops in use, masking tape and paper would be required. This use of two drop cloths with masking tape and paper, while hardly efficient, rarely proves sufficient. In that, oftentimes, the exposed edge of a drop cloth, or the paper, will snag or catch on the door when attempts are made to open or close it. This not only debilitates the functioning of the door, but displaces the articles meant for protection; thereby exposing the permanent floor as a result.

Some also attempt to cover the threshold and both sides of a door/way by laying a single, traditional, rectangular drop cloth or floor cover to pass through the door way; or run perpendicular. A bunching-up of the material occurs at the doorway's edges or casing since it was not made in a manner (narrow enough) that would allow it to lay flat while passing through; thereby creating an impediment when attempting to paint the actual door casing and trim. Also, the inherent folds or creases that occur in the drop cloth or floor covering as a result of an oversized covering being placed in a narrow doorway, increases the likelihood of the door snagging or catching on the drop cloth or floor cover; and therefore inhibiting the full functioning of the door.

An inherent problem in folding over a drop cloth or floor covering, in order to attempt to allow it to lay flat while passing through a doorway, is the added thickness that becomes present as a result of folding over the floor cover. In many instances, it is just this minimal, additional thickness that can create problems with the door's ability to open and close naturally and completely; by snagging or latching upon the floor cover. As well as mentioning, this vague attempt to get a single door drop cloth to lay flat, and pass through a door by folding it over enough to be the approximate width of the door/way, will inherently leave the floor exposed in the immediate areas below the actual side pieces of door casing and trim, on both sides of the door.

Accordingly, there is a need for a single piece, temporary floor covering that will not only pass through a door way and cover the total immediate working area on both sides of a door and doorway, but one that will also, by nature, lay flat when passing through a variety of [or variance in] doorway widths. Such a cover would thereby eliminate the bunching-up of the material as it passes through the doorway, and therefore much of the potential for debilitating the door's functioning; or open and closing. Alas, there is a need for an improvement to the overall efficiency in the manner in which one might protect the general area about a door and through a doorway, with a single, one-piece article floor covering.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, this invention comprises an improvement to the manner in which temporary or disposable floor coverings are construed, and used, in order to protect permanent flooring from potential spills, stains, debris or simply traffic that come about when such tasks as painting, carpentry, or the like are performed. More particularly, this invention pertains to a one-piece article or floor cover that will pass through doorways of varying widths, cover the total immediate working area on both sides of the door and/or doorway, and in doing so, will lay completely flat, eliminate bunching and the potential for door snagging, and thereby facilitate the door's natural ability to open and close.

Accordingly, one aspect of this invention is that this floor covering or drop cloth will posses a section in which the width (or length) is more narrow than that of the rest, or other sections; narrow enough to allow this section to fit and lay flat within a doorway or upon its threshold. While the other, wider sections are to lay flat about, and extend beyond, the doorway and cover the immediate working area on both sides of the doorway.

Yet another aspect of the present invention are the extensions of material, or loose flaps, that function and exist as the adjustable, outer edges of the previously mentioned narrower section. Thusly, allowing this drop cloth or floor cover to accommodate a variety of door or door way widths.

Comprehensively, this invention features an improvement to the currently used methods and products of temporarily covering the immediate working area on both sides of a doorway in order to protect the permanent flooring. By providing a one-piece article which possesses a section in which the adjustable width of this section is made to accommodate the actual varying widths of most doorways, this floor cover will be allowed to lay completely flat as it passes through the doorway, and as the other, wider sections of the article lay about on both sides of the doorway or threshold. In doing so, have overcome the previously discussed disadvantages associated with protecting the floor of a doorway and its surrounding area, using not only two drop cloths or floor covers, but a single floor cover as well.

These advantages and features of the present invention and the manner in which they are realized will become more apparent upon viewing and considering the following drawings and detailed descriptions.

DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top planal view of the article of material being used in this invention, indicating its general shape or outlining dimensions.

FIG. 1A is the same top view of FIG. 1, but rather shows the sectional characteristics of this invention; as referred to herein.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the (N) narrow section as shown and defined in FIG. 1A, further indicating the presence and locations of the extension of material or adjustable flaps; as referred to herein. Shading is used to aid in the clarity of this drawing; wherein the shaded area represents the article of material of this invention.

FIGS. 3 and 3A are exploded views of FIG. 2, showing one side of the (N) narrow section and further illustrating the capable movement of the flaps that allow for the adjusting of the overall width within this (N) narrow section.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of The DOOR DROP Cloth in its functional mode; in use.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The novel concept of this invention, entitled The DOOR DROP Cloth, will now be further described by referring to FIGS. 1-4.

The article of material used for this invention consists of a single piece of (10 oz.) cotton canvas. Within the manufacturing process the approximate desired, rectangular shape of approximately 4′×5′, and of minimal thickness, is achieved. Further within the process, at an approximate off-centered position, along the length of the article, and on both sides, a portion of material (approx 8″×8″) it cut out, defining the general shape of this article of invention; as shown in FIG. 1.

Thusly, a section or portion of The DOOR DROP Cloth has been made more narrow (or less wide) than that of the other sections; as shown and defined in FIG. 1A. More specifically, to enable this narrow section of the article to lay flat within the average doorway or upon passing over its threshold; as dimensionally represented in FIG. 1.

Furthermore, this narrow section, meant to aid a one-piece article in passing through a doorway, by eliminating bunching of the material at the doorway casing, jamb, or trim, shall not offer a rigid measurement of width, but rather an adjustable varying width, meant to accommodate a plurality of door or doorway widths, by providing loose extensions of material, or “flaps,” at both ends of this narrow section; as indicated in FIG. 2.

All edges of the article of the material for this invention have been sewn with an over-locking, anti-fray stitch that will help prevent fraying or tearing, and generally provide added strength and durability.

The extensions of material, or adjustable flaps, located at both ends of the narrow section, shall provide a varying width for this narrow section of the article, by simply being allowed to be folded-over, folded-up, be left down, or rolled up and allowed to move independent of each other; as indicated in FIG. 3.

In its fully functional mode, The DOOR DROP Cloth will be allowed to lay flat while passing through a variety of doorway widths, as well as protect the permanent floor of the immediate working area of both sides of the door, doorway, its casing and trim; as shown in FIGS. 4 and 3A.

While this invention has been described in reference to a preferred embodiment, it intends to cover any modifications that may fall within the true scope or concept of this invention. 

1. A temporary, single-piece floor cover has been made to lay flat while passing through a doorway and cover and protect the immediate areas on both sides of a doorway, its door, casing and trim, by possessing a section that has been made more narrow, or less wide, than that of the rest of the floor cover, and more specifically, narrow enough to allow this section to sit or pass through the actual doorway or threshold without the material bunching up, in turn, providing a most efficient means of protecting the permanent flooring of the area in and around a doorway, from potential spills, stains, or general traffic and debris, whereby the facility of the door is inherently maximized.
 2. The single-piece floor cover possessing the characteristic of having a section more narrow than that of the rest of the article mentioned in claim 1, wherein incorporated within this narrow section are extensions of material, or foldable “flaps”, that supplementary determine this section's width, and by doing so, this [narrow] section of the floor cover will have an adjustable or varying width, allowing it to accommodate most all doorways, despite any variance in door or threshold widths. 